Applicants prepare proposals describing a tailored educational plan including coursework, research project objectives, a timeline, and educational objectives. These educational plans are based on hands-on experience in ongoing peer-reviewed cancer prevention research projects under the mentorship of an established investigator. The successful experience in the first five years of this program has stimulated faculty willingness to mentor additional trainees. Trainees participate in a cross-disciplinary curriculum that includes a core curriculum in cancer biology, cancer prevention, public health and the behavioral sciences. The M. D. Anderson Cancer Center has existing patient - study databases and accessible populations for prevention and control intervention studies. Faculty research mentors in the proposed program supervise extensive laboratory and clinical facilities. Postdoctoral and predoctoral (post-Master's) trainees are recruited from the basic biomedical sciences, biomedical statistics, epidemiology, behavioral and social sciences, nursing, medicine, and related public health disciplines. Efforts have been successful in recruiting women and minority applicants. Selection of the students is based on the merit of the trainee's proposed educational objectives and mentor-supervised research opportunities. The review of applicants is carried out by our Cancer Prevention Education Committee with external reviewers. This program has attracted promising trainees to careers in cancer prevention, mentored their research and enabled them to begin their careers with a research focus.